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The data for this briefing paper were collected from two LSAY cohorts: the Year 9 class of 1995 and the Year 9 class of 1998. Information on the education and labour market activities of these groups has been collected annually. The findings reported here follow the experiences of university entrants from these groups up to age 23. The findings are discussed in further detail in three recent LSAY research reports on the first year experience (Hillman, 2005), university completion (Marks, 2007) and unmet demand (Marks, 2005). Earlier LSAY research, based upon previous groups of young people followed over longer periods of time, are also used. Show less

This briefing paper provides initial analysis of national data on university enrolments, tracking students from commencement to completion of university. The research briefing focuses on the completion of university among key equity groups in higher education, offering new insight into the outcomes for a number of groups underrepresented in the higher education sector. This work is part of a larger project funded by a research grant from the National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education (NCSEHE). The project explores the outcomes of equity groups using complex administrative data that allows for the tracking through university of all undergraduates enrolled in Australia. The research discussed in this briefing offers a new perspective on analyses of equity in higher education by focusing on the outcomes of those disadvantaged students who succeed in reaching university. The underlying question that guides this research is - are outcomes equal once students are through the gates of the university?

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This report details the findings from a research project funded by the National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education (NCSEHE) that explores new data tracking student cohorts through the higher education system – from commencement to completion. In a time of rapid growth in the Australian higher education system, resulting in expanded opportunities for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, it is critical to understand which characteristics are linked to a lower likelihood of completion, in order to target retention policies for 'at-risk' groups at the national and institutional levels.

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This briefing describes the post-school education, training and labour market activities of young people in Australia between 1996 to 2000 and identifies factors that affect their chances of getting full-time employment or not becoming unemployed. It is based on the findings of two LSAY research reports: ‘School leavers in Australia: profiles and pathways’ and ‘Dynamics of the Australian youth labour market: the 1975 cohort, 1996-2000. Highlights include: the early career and labour markets of Australian youth are largely positive; less than 10 per cent of young people remain outside full-time education and training or full-time work over a sustained period of time; completing an apprenticeship lowers the risk of unemployment for those who leave school without completing Year 12; and part-time work can be a stepping-stone into full-time employment. Show less

The current composition of the degree-qualified labour force in Australia reflects a combination of a range of factors, most notably the operation over time of the domestic higher education system and the migration system. While policies in each of these areas influence the extent and mix of skills in the Australian workforce, analyses of higher education and migration policies often focus on one or the other of these areas in relative isolation. Given the central importance of a skilled workforce to Australia's future as an innovative economy, the intertwined effects of policies in each of these areas must be recognised. This briefing aims to inform this debate by presenting evidence on the changing balance of skills from domestic and migrant sources in recent years, and comparing the labour market outcomes of persons who obtained their qualifications domestically with those of skilled migrants. The focus is on persons holding a bachelor degree or higher qualification, and occupations with a level of skill commensurate with these qualifications, which comprise the majority of managerial and professional occupations in Australia. It should be noted that this is wider than some definitions of skilled work, which also include technical and trade occupations.

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Australia invested $111.8 billion in education in 2015. The sources of this funding and the pathways it follows through various systems are complex. Rarely are all the components of this system captured in the one place. This report offers a detailed insight into investment in Australian education, capturing data from all levels - from early childhood to higher education - and all funding sources - the federal government, state governments, private contributions and the transfers that take place between these. The purpose of this report is to provide this information in a format that will enable others to extract elements of relevance to them in order to make informed commentary relating to education investment in Australia. The key source for this data is the Australian Government Department of Education and Training submission for the annual joint UNESCO Institute for Statistics, OECD and Eurostat (UOE) data collection on education statistics (UOE, 2017, 2018).

The Australian education system is built around three pillars that consume the bulk of expenditure on education: primary schools (27 per cent of all expenditure), secondary schools (28 per cent) and higher education (26 per cent for Bachelor and above education level). The remaining 19 per cent of education expenditure is spread between early childhood education, preschool, vocational education and training (VET) Certificates, Diplomas and Advanced Diplomas. The report examines three key questions: How much is spent on education - in total and per student? What proportion of national income is spent on education? What proportion of government spending is devoted to education? For each of these questions, statistics are presented by level of education, sector and funding source. In addition, trends in funding over time are explored. The main body of the report offers overall highlights and graphical representations of the data. Appendix A contains detailed tables with the underlying statistics, while Appendices B and C offer technical information used in making calculations.

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This report looks at the pathways of recent school leavers who enter the higher education sector in Australia, focusing on the first three years following senior secondary school. Based on data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY), it aims to: provide estimates of the proportions of entrants who change courses or leave the higher education sector before completing a course; identify factors associated with course change within the higher education sector; identify factors associated with attrition from the higher education sector; and examine the initial education, training and labour market destinations of those who leave the higher education sector before completing a qualification. The study found that 13 per cent of young people who first commenced higher education in 1999 or 2000 had changed courses within the higher education sector by 2001, and 14 per cent left the higher education sector without completing a qualification and had not returned by late 2001. However, attrition from the higher education sector did not necessarily mean the end of education and training as students may move to the vocational education and training (VET) sector or enter full-time employment in their chosen field. The study also found that the factors associated with course changes are different from those associated with attrition. Show less

Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) skills are promoted by the Australian Government as pivotal for Australia's economic prosperity and meeting future workforce requirements (Timms et al., 2018). Whether particular equity groups are able to participate in STEM has implications for the future labour market outcomes of these groups and their contributions in an area seen as vitally important for innovation and prosperity. This study, developed with the support of a National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education (NCSEHE) Research Grant, is framed around three core research questions: How do the STEM pathways of equity groups and non-equity groups differ? What factors facilitate equity group students participating in university STEM courses? Do the factors influencing young people's university STEM participation differ between equity groups and non-equity groups?

The study uses data tracking a cohort of young people from age 15 to 25 to explore these core questions. This data is drawn from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) and from the Programme of International Student Assessment (PISA). The study offers new insights into STEM pathways for young people in equity groups as they progress from secondary school, through post-school education and into the workforce. The equity groups of focus in this study are people from Low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds, Non-metropolitan areas, First in Family to enrol at university and Women in Non-Traditional Areas (WINTA).

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This report is part of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) project which studies the transition of several groups of young Australians from school into postsecondary education and/or work. It discusses changes in the patterns of participation over the last two decades and also addresses several policy and conceptual issues relevant to educational participation. These include rurality, ethnicity, the influence of socioeconomic background, part-time work, and the effect of schools and psychological factors. Findings of this survey include: 76 per cent of the 1995 cohort participated in Year 12 in 1998; females are more likely to participate in Year 12 than males and gender differences have grown with more young women participating in higher education than men; Year 9 students whose parents work in high status occupations and/or come from more educated backgrounds are more likely to continue on to Year 12; students from language backgrounds other than English are consistently more likely to participate in Year 12 and higher education; students living in non-metropolitan areas are less likely to participate in Year 12 and higher education; Year 12 participation is strongly associated with achievement in literacy and numeracy in Year 9; and occupational background, school type and achievement are not as strongly associated with participation in higher education as they once were. Show less

This paper introduces a new occupational status scale, the Australian Socioeconomic Index 2006 (AUSEI06), which can be used to explore a wide range of equity issues relating to educational aspirations, early school leaving, access to higher education, literacy and numeracy levels, and other aspects of educational access, achievement, and attainment. AUSEI06 was developed in response to the introduction of the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The scale provides a simple means for educational researchers to convert ANZSCO codes into more sociologically meaningful occupational status scores. The aims of this paper are fourfold: to outline AUSEI06’s theoretical underpinnings; to describe the development of the scale; to validate it for use in educational contexts; and to offer some practical suggestions for its use. AUSEI06 is a socioeconomic index. The scaling of occupations is based upon the assumption that occupations provide the means of converting a person’s human capital (education) into material rewards (income). That is, the relationships between education, occupation, and income are conceptualized in terms of a simple causal chain whereby educational effects on earnings are mediated, as far as possible, by occupational attainment. Data from the 2006 Census were used to generate the AUSEI06 scale. An iterative scaling algorithm, first developed for the International Socioeconomic Index (ISEI), was used to scale occupations in such a manner as to maximize the indirect effect of education on earnings (via occupation) while simultaneously minimizing its direct effect on earnings. The resultant AUSEI06 scale ranges from zero to 100, with labourers at the bottom of the scale and medical practitioners at the top. Data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) and the Negotiating the Life Course (NLC) project were used to validate the AUSEI06 for use in educational research. Concurrent validity was assessed by examining whether AUSEI06 was related to a range of educational outcomes in an expected way. Consistent with previous research, the results suggest that access to educational resources, school achievement, educational aspirations, school completion, obtaining a post-school qualification, and the type of qualification obtained are associated with the socioeconomic characteristics of a person’s family when they were growing up as measured by AUSEI06. In summary, AUSEI06 provides a means for educational researchers to convert ANZSCO codes into occupational status scores. In the past, parental occupational status has been linked with the educational outcomes of their offspring. Validation results suggest that family background, as measured by AUSEI06, continues to be related to these outcomes.

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